Gibson murder trial concludes today

Friday

Nov 13, 2009 at 11:48 AM

Matthew PleasantStaff Writer

HOUMA — A forensic investigator said in court Thursday that the blood staining the interior of the Gibson trailer where two men were fatally shot in 2006 reveals the sequence of events that unfolded there.Kevin Smith Jr., 32, of Long Beach, Calif., faces two counts of second-degree murder in the killings. He is accused of shooting 30-year-old Yuri Johnson Jr. and Noble Kelley, 51, both of California, in the trailer at 108 Ricardo Court, Gibson.Smith’s trial began Monday. If convicted, he faces mandatory life in prison. Closing arguments were scheduled to begin today.Smith, Kelley and Johnson rode to Louisiana on a bus together, according to testimony. Smith joined the group in San Antonio, Texas, where he lived at the time. Both Kelley and Johnson had relatives from the area.The investigator, Ross Gardner of Jonesboro, Ga., testified as part of the prosecution’s case against Smith. He based his findings on his analysis of the trailer’s blood stains as well as photographs and documents from a police investigation into the March 16, 2006, slayings.Investigators found about 5 pounds of marijuana in a closet in the trailer. Prosecutors did not mention a possible a motive in opening statements.Kelley was eating in the living room when a bullet struck him in the top of the head and he collapsed facedown, Gardner said. A nearby “wipe” of blood on the floor indicates someone moved his body toward the trailer’s door. Kelley died in May of 2006 after nearly two months on life support.Johnson was shot on a couch in the living room, Gardner said, and a shoe print was visible in a “mess” of blood by the furniture. Based on other stains in the same area, Gardner said the shoe print was made as the attack occurred.Johnson was not wearing sneakers during the attack, according to testimony. The shoe print is “consistent” with sneakers found at the trailer, he said. According to earlier testimony, the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab found the shoes could not be exactly matched to prints left in the trailer but couldn’t be ruled out as a possibility. Prosecutors have argued that Smith changed his clothes after shooting the men.Johnson ran away after his initial gunshot wound and headed down a hall toward a back bedroom, he said.“Amazingly enough, he got up under his own power,” he said.Before entering the bedroom, the blood stains indicate that Johnson stopped and had some type of interaction in the doorway, Gardner said, though he was unsure why Johnson stopped there.The stains in the bedroom show Johnson was able to make his way through the room, he said. Blood near a hamper indicates Johnson was kneeling near it when a bullet hit him in the back of the head and exited near his face.Investigators found no bullet in the area, Gardner said, though a projectile was later found in Johnson’s shirt.Johnson then managed to run from the bedroom and outside the trailer, where he was found, he said. According to testimony, he later bled to death. Gardner said a pair of T-shirts found at the trailer were likely worn by the attacker based on the blood stains they bore.He described to jurors how the stains could have been made, including one that may indicate the attacker pressed up against blood on the bedroom door.“This is someone who was actively engaged in the attack,” he said.The defendant’s father, Kevin Smith Sr., testified Thursday that Johnson and his son were stepbrothers and had a close relationship.Prosecutors say a bloody palm print found in the trailer’s hall was matched to Smith by the State Police Crime Lab.Corey Sims, who was among those who discovered the wounded men, has testified Smith told him two men in ski masks committed the shooting.Investigators never recovered the .38-caliber revolver they believe was used in the shooting, according to testimony.

Staff Writer Matthew Pleasant can be reached at 857-2202 or matthew.pleasant@houmatoday.com.

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